Fla. boat thief partially sinks yacht in Miami

MIAMI (CBSMiami) – A would be boat thief had a sinking feeling after he tried to steal a yacht from the Miami Beach Marina.

The 80-foot Hatteras pulled into the marina around 11:30 p.m. Sunday. After the captain stepped off the vessel, a man jumped in and tried to take off.

The man crashed into several boats, docks and concrete pillars. The collisions caused a rupture in the yacht’s hull and it partially sank. The yacht was listed for sale for $3.2 million dollars.

Jimmy Terry, who was sleeping in one of the boats docked at the marina, said the man lost power in one of the yacht’s engines and that was why he had so much trouble steering it.

“He was screaming ‘help, help, help anybody help’ because the guy was going crazy. The guy was a freakin’ lunatic. I just thank God he didn’t crash into my boat, really, I mean I got damage but not as much as there could have been. My life was in jeopardy,” said Terry.

When a Miami Fire Rescue boat arrived, the man jumped overboard and swam away. A police dive team and a Coast Guard crew were unable to find him.

A dawn’s first light police discovered a second theft attempt of a yacht docked at the marina. It too was partially sunk.